The modern ski binding is attached to the ski and is designed to release the skier's boot from the ski so as to prevent bodily injury to the skier. Unfortunately, when skiing in deep powdered snow, the ski is frequently lost because it will remain below the surface of the snow. Thus, the skier will have to dig in the snow, frequently exhausting himself in adverse weather conditions which may lead to health problems such as frost bite. Quite often, he will never find the ski because it was thrown too far from him, and, beside losing hundreds of dollars worth of ski equipment, he will have to walk down the mountain in deep snow and, thus, again expose himself to health hazards from fatigue or adverse weather conditions. This invention is designed to enable the skier to locate his ski quickly while still allowing the ski to completely detach from the skier's boot and thus prevent bodily harm.
Various devices have been designed to prevent the skier from losing his ski in deep powder. Patents of interest in this field, or in locating lost objects in general, include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,322 issued Aug. 13, 1985, to Yeski discloses a ski alarm and locator that sounds an alarm when the ski becomes detached from the boot. The system relies on sound rather than sight. It requires complex electrical circuitry and a power source which would be much more expensive and may become faulty, unbeknownst to the skier. It does not offer the simple, straight-forward, and inexpensive means that my invention offers.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,697 issued Aug. 11, 1987, to Thorley discloses a retractable ski leash device. The leash is attached to the skier's boot on one end and is wound around a spool in a housing attached to the ski on the other end. This device does not permit complete detachment of the ski from the skier's boot, as does my invention, and thus may lead to serious bodily injury in a more serious ski accident, hurting either the skier wearing the device or an innocent bystander. Furthermore, the housing embodying the spool to which the tether is attached may become faulty in icy conditions or simply from wear and tear.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,063,753 issued Dec. 20, 1977 to Cordeiro discloses a runaway binding device which causes the ski to remain attached to the skier's ankle by means of a long tether after a fall. The device would be dangerous both to the skier and to innocent bystanders because the tether would pull the ski along with the skier during a serious accident.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,945,338 issued Mar. 23, 1976 to Correa discloses an inflatable balloon for locating lost aircraft.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,013,035 issued Mar. 22, 1976 discloses a balloon signal assembly embodying a means of automatically filling a balloon with a lighter than air gas for signalling purposes. This is not designed for snow skiing and would not apply here.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,764,154 discloses a safety ski binding which includes a rigid base plate member disposable between a sole member of a ski boot and a ski member. This would not provide for ski location after a fall.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,893,682 discloses a releasable ski binding having a self-restoring capability. This does not provide a means for locating a ski after a fall.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,614 discloses a ski binding employing a cable connected at one end to the skiing boot and at the other end to the ski. This does not permit for complete detachment of the ski from the skier.
German Patent No. 24 06 754 discloses a retractable line tethering a ski to a skier's boot. This does not provide for complete detachment of the ski from the skier.
German Patent No. 27 06 015 discloses a ski recovery device consisting of a belt which is attached to the ski boot or user at one end and fixed to the ski at the other end. This does not provide for complete detachment of the ski from the skier.
German Patent No. 26 24 501 discloses a strap having one end fastened to the heel housing of the ski boot via a coil spring. A snap hook on the other end is attached to an eye on the ski or ski bonding. This does not provide for complete detachment of the ski from the skier.
German Patent No. 29 30 502 discloses a rotatable spool fitted on the upper surface of the ski which carries a connecting line attached to the skier. The connecting line is made from a phosphorescent material and employs an optical or acoustic warning installation on the ski and coordinated with the moving of the spool.